Regional court faults El Salvador for denying a mother’s access to abortion, violating her rights

SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador (AP) — The Inter-American Court of Human Rights on Friday found El Salvador’s government responsible for violating the rights of a young Salvadoran woman who was denied an abortion of her anencephalic fetus in a country with a total ban on abortions.

The Costa Rica-based regional court said the government was responsible for obstetric violence, health violations and violating the physical integrity of the woman who had other health issues.

The court faulted a lack of protocols for high-risk pregnancies that led to her care being “bureaucratized and judicialized” in 2013. The woman, identified only as Beatriz, had requested and was denied an abortion early in her pregnancy. The fetus died hours after delivery.

The case had been brought by various organizations that demanded reparations for the woman’s family. She died after a traffic accident in 2017.

El Salvador’s government had argued that the medical team had autonomy to decide the best course of treatment and to preserve the life of the fetus.

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